Film to tell story of local humanitarian

Widow going back to Afghanistan to help in Tom Little documentary

Published 9:22 pm, Thursday, March 7, 2013

Photo: Paul Buckowski

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Tom Little, center, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. (courtesy of Libby Little) less

Tom Little, center, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. ... more

Photo: Paul Buckowski

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Libby Little holds a photograph of her husband, optometrist Tom Little, who was killed in Afghanistan, during an interview at her Bethlehem home Wednesday morning December 22, 2010. (John Carl D'Annibale / Times Union archive) less

Libby Little holds a photograph of her husband, optometrist Tom Little, who was killed in Afghanistan, during an interview at her Bethlehem home Wednesday morning December 22, 2010. (John Carl D'Annibale / ... more

Photo: John Carl D'Annibale

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Libby Little, widow of optometrist Tom Little, who was killed in Afghanistan, during an interview at her Bethlehem home Wednesday morning December 22, 2010. (John Carl D'Annibale / Times Union archive)

Libby Little, widow of optometrist Tom Little, who was killed in Afghanistan, during an interview at her Bethlehem home Wednesday morning December 22, 2010. (John Carl D'Annibale / Times Union archive)

Photo: John Carl D'Annibale

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President Barack Obama hugs Libby Little, the wife of Tom Little, an optometrist who was murdered by the Taliban in Badakhshan, Afghanistan, as Obama presents the Medal of Freedom during a ceremony at the White House in Washington, DC, February 15, 2011. Dr. Little and his wife, Libby, lived and worked in Afghanistan for three decades beginning in 1976, raising three daughters and providing vision, dental and mother/child care to the people of that country through the NOOR program (Noor means light in Persian) that Dr. Little ran for the International Assistance Mission. (Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images/ archive) less

President Barack Obama hugs Libby Little, the wife of Tom Little, an optometrist who was murdered by the Taliban in Badakhshan, Afghanistan, as Obama presents the Medal of Freedom during a ceremony at the White ... more

Photo: JIM WATSON

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Tom Little, right, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. (courtesy of Libby Little) less

Tom Little, right, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. ... more

Photo: Paul Buckowski

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Libby and Tom Little are show in this October 2001 photo in Brunswick. (Times Union archive)

Libby and Tom Little are show in this October 2001 photo in Brunswick. (Times Union archive)

Photo: TOM LAPOINT

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Libby Little remained at home in Delmar during the summer of 2010 while her husband, Tom, worked on a medical mission in Afghanistan. Tom Little, 61, was killed there and was buried in Kabul. (Lauren Stanforth/Times Union archive) less

Libby Little remained at home in Delmar during the summer of 2010 while her husband, Tom, worked on a medical mission in Afghanistan. Tom Little, 61, was killed there and was buried in Kabul. (Lauren ... more

Photo: Copyright.LG Electronics Inc.

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Libby Little and her husband, Tom Little, an optometrist from Delmar who was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010, when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. (courtesy of Libby Little)

Libby Little and her husband, Tom Little, an optometrist from Delmar who was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010, when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. (courtesy of Libby Little)

Photo: Paul Buckowski

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Tom Little, left, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. (courtesy of Libby Little) less

Tom Little, left, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. ... more

Photo: Paul Buckowski

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Tom Little, left, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. (courtesy of Libby Little) less

Tom Little, left, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. ... more

Photo: Paul Buckowski

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Tom Little, foreground right, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. (courtesy of Libby Little) less

Tom Little, foreground right, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ... more

Photo: Paul Buckowski

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Tom Little, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. (courtesy of Libby Little) less

Tom Little, an optometrist from Delmar, working with the Noor eye clinic in Afghanistan. Little was killed at age 61 in Afghanistan on Aug. 5, 2010 when he and 9 others were killed in an ambush. (courtesy of ... more

Photo: Paul Buckowski

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This undated image made available by International Assistance Mission shows Tom Little of Delmar, N.Y., an optometrist and team leader for IAM. He was one of 10 civilian volunteers killed in Afghanistan on Thursday, Aug. 5, 2010. (AP Photo/International Assistance Mission/archive) less

This undated image made available by International Assistance Mission shows Tom Little of Delmar, N.Y., an optometrist and team leader for IAM. He was one of 10 civilian volunteers killed in Afghanistan on ... more

Photo: International Assistance Mission

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In this undated handout picture released by The Little Family on August 21, 2010, US aid worker Tom Little poses at an undisclosed location in Nuristan, Afghanistan. Two Americans who were among eight foreign aid workers shot dead in a remote region of Afghanistan earlier this month were buried in Kabul. (HO/AFP/Getty Images/archive) less

In this undated handout picture released by The Little Family on August 21, 2010, US aid worker Tom Little poses at an undisclosed location in Nuristan, Afghanistan. Two Americans who were among eight foreign ... more

Photo: HO

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Film to tell story of local humanitarian

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BETHLEHEM — Libby Little is returning to Afghanistan with documentary filmmakers to help tell the story of her husband, Tom Little, a 61-year-old Delmar optometrist who was gunned down on Aug. 5, 2010, along with nine members of a medical team.

The humanitarian workers were returning from offering free eye clinics for poor Afghans in the province of Nuristan, 160 miles north of Kabul, when their convoy of SUVs was attacked in an ambush. The Taliban claimed responsibility, but the case remains unsolved.

The working title of the film is "The Hard Places," a phrase Little used to describe his work in that war-torn country.

"This is not a political film and I will not be involved in any talk about the future direction in Afghanistan after the troops leave," Little said. "Tom was a day-to-day person and he refused to talk about politics or to make any overall assumptions about the country."

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The Littles' humanitarian efforts continued despite sectarian violence, a Soviet invasion and troop withdrawal, long stretches of shelling, the rise of the Taliban and the invasion by U.S. and coalition forces in 2001.

President Barack Obama has announced that 34,000 U.S. troops, about half the American force, will be withdrawn from Afghanistan over the next 12 months. Between 8,000 and 12,000 troops are expected to remain after the end of 2014, when NATO's combat mission transitions to training.

Little accepted a 2011 Medal of Freedom presented posthumously in honor of her husband's work by Obama in a White House ceremony. She last visited Kabul in August, 2011 for a service at her husband's grave in the British Cemetery to mark the one-year anniversary of his death.

"That was my whole life for so many years and then it ended so abruptly," the Delmar woman said. "It's hard to heal back here when the wholeness of our life there meant everything. I miss the culture, the people and our work."

Afghans had named a new NOOR eye hospital in Kabul in honor of Tom Little, but his wife and others urged officials to take his name off the facility. They did.

"They meant well, but it wasn't right for a foreigner's name to be on a government hospital," Little said. "We managed government projects and Afghan-owned projects. Tom never would have wanted his name on it."

Little will travel this month to Kabul with Dan Swinton, a documentary filmmaker she met when he was working at WMHT-TV and producing historical programs. He is now director of production at Mountain Lake PBS TV station in Plattsburgh.

"Having Libby with us is going to open up Tom's world in a way we never could get on our own," Swinton said. "Libby said from the beginning that there is no way to understand Tom's life without going to Afghanistan."

They have numerous interviews scheduled. "I want to put a human face on the people who live there," Swinton said. "We will use Tom's story as a lens to help us see the true Afghanistan, instead of only images of war."

Swinton is collaborating with German filmmakers Lukas and Salome Augustin. The couple lived in Afghanistan and produced a documentary film, "Afghanistan: Touchdown and flight," which was viewed more than 500,000 times on Vimeo. All three are working for little or nothing. They've raised $35,000 in donations for "The Hard Places" on Kickstarter, an online funding platform for creative projects. Their goal is $70,000 and they hope to complete the film by the end of 2013 and to release it on PBS stations statewide and nationally.

"This is not an advocacy film and it won't be a piece of hero worship," Swinton said. "Tom was a normal human being, not a martyr. His story and voice will drive the narrative."